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Thursday, August 5, 2010

A Little Time to Smell the Roses

So anyway, yeah, it's been a busy summer, to say the least. I won't launch into a bunch of excuses as to why I haven't been writing much - it's all due to a massive project at work finally winding down after 2 years. Man oh man, I sure do miss reading genealogy blogs and researching! Hopefully, the next few weeks will see things winding down.

But that's all besides the point for today!

So I had this doctor's appt and usually they take forever because I have an AWESOME doctor that I love because she spends time actually talking with you. Unfortunately, she does it with all her patients so she is always running really really late. Her office is right near a place that makes delish pad thai, so I figured I'd go to the appt, and then grab some pad thai on the way home for dinner.

Ah yes, the best laid plans!

Naturally, today was like I was in bizarro-world, I'd never gotten in and out of there so fast, and there I was, wanting my pad thai but the restaurant didn't open for dinner for another hour!!!

Spur of the moment I decided to take a little drive into a state park that was just 2 minutes down the road while I waited for the restaurant.

It was the best decision I've made in months!

It's Ridley Creek State Park, that I've been in dozens of times before, but apparently have always managed to miss some really important aspects of it!

Right at the center there is a huge U-shaped mansion that the park office is now in. It was built in 1914 around the original 18th century farmhouse. Surrounding it are gardens that are in just exactly the perfect state of not quite being kept up.

It was hot and very humid, a real summer's day. Blue sky, trees all around, and every once in a while, a wonderful breeze would come through, interrupting the hot sun. There wasn't anyone else around.

The cicadas in the trees were absolutely deafening.

I couldn't hear any road noise, just the cicadas.

I got to be reminded of how huge really really old trees can be.

I saw a butterfly and a big fat bumblebee duking it out for this one flower, which must have been the best tasting one of all of them.

I found an old greenhouse in the woods, broken glass, trees growing out of it.

I found a door on an outbuilding that clearly had not been opened in years.

I found a secret garden!!!

In short, I found bliss! It was a wonderful little 60 minute interlude. I got to be reminded of how beautiful nature is.

4 comments:

Wow, Leah, dad and I went there last year, went on a whim as we were driving by!!! Never saw that mansion before. We walked around the gardens but didn't see the old greenhouse. Remember us saying we saw a sign in Ridley Creek State Park that said "Civil War canceled'? And us without a camera... The lady in the office let us look around in a few rooms. It was really cool!!